Free Comic Book Day 2019: Pickups!

By StuffBySpencer | Spencer's Stuff | 6 May 2019

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2019 PICKUPS

So! Yesterday, May 4th, was Free Comic Book Day! For those who don't know, the first Saturday in May is "Free Comic Book Day". Tons of comic book shops around the world participate in offering customers free comics! Many comic publishing companies send out special "Free Comic Book Day Edition" releases of comics specifically for this day. This acts as a sort of advertisement for the companies & their series. Shops set their own rules for what they giveaway, sometimes limited per customer, sometimes a free for all, who knows!

I love participating by going to the various shops around me, and picking up whatever I find interesting. This year was no different. I picked up a total of 8 comics this time round.

Let's talk about them!

FREE COMICS:

these are the special free-comic-book-day editions that I picked up absolutely free!

Kino's Journey

Kino's Journey is supposed to introduce western-audiences into the manga-format of comics and, as such, is read from right-to-left, as apposed to the traditional left-to-right that regular English comics are formatted. This is a rather short read, so I finished the comic yesterday, the day I picked it up!

It was interesting, and did it's job at enticing me to pick up the full story. In this comic, we fall a character named Kino who is on a journey to... somewhere! We aren't actually told where they are headed, but we do meet 3 strange characters along the way. I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but I will say that the way these characters are staged and introduced, really makes you think. I love the way their backstories all intertwine and I spent a little bit thinking about the deeper message these characters were telling us, the reader.

I recommend anyone who wants and interesting read to try this one out.

SPAWN

SPAWN, how could I not! I like the SPAWN series, and so when I saw there would be a free comic book day edition this year, I knew I had to get it. This is one of those "real comic vibes" type of thing for me. Whenever I read it, I feel like this is what the cliche comic book experience is like, but in a good way!

I like the crazy characters, the exciting setting, the action, it's just a fun comic to read and indulge in!

Lady Mechanika

Lady Mechanika is one that I have not heard of before, but the story intrigued me. This comic follows a character dubbed "Lady Mechanika", who is a survivor of a mad scientist's horrific experiments which left her with mechanical limbs. She has no memory of what happened, and is on the haunt to figure out her old life.

A half mechanical private investigator, trying to figure out the mysteries of her past, set in a steampunk atmosphere? How could I not pick this story up!

Animosity

Animosity, another comic I'm unfamiliar with, poses an equally exciting story.

Set in a world where, suddenly, all animals "woke up" and began thinking, talking and, even worse, taking revenge! I'm excited to get a sample of what this bizarre premise has in store, and find out what would happen if animals became sentient. Let's be real, though, we dumb humans would probably all perish.

Starburns Presents

Starburns Presents is one I wasn't exactly planning on picking up, but it was the only comic left at the last shop I visited, and I didn't want to leave empty handed.

This looks like a truly wacky one, featuring cross-species wrestling events, intergalactic racing, and more. Just a truly weird & fun space comic!

PAID COMICS:

*Free Comic Book Day isn't only about getting free shit! It's also important to purchase something at the shop in order to support your local geek-scene! I tried to buy at least one item from each shop I went to.

Dungeons & Dragons: Evil at Baldur's Gate

I mean, come on. You should know by now my love for Dungeons & Dragons. I had to pick this one up, especially since it was on sale at the shop I visited.

Following the adventures of Minsc, Krydle, Shandie, Delina, Nervs, and Boo, this comic finds the Baldur's Gate heroes adapting to the changes inflicting upon them from them many adventures! A good ol' romp in the world of Dungeons & Dragons, I'm very excited to read this through, and through again! :^)

MONSTRESS

MONSTRESS is a comic I stumbled upon by pure chance. I haven't ever heard of this before, but it was sitting on the table right next to the Dungeons & Dragons comic I picked up. The cover art looked rad, so I thumbed through the pages to see if the art style carried through.

And, sure enough, it did! Seeing gorgeous art in a comic is often enough to make me buy it, but reading the synopsis on the back sold me on it even more:

"Set in an alternate world of art deco beauty and steampunk horror, MONSTRESS tells the epic story of Maika Halfwolf, a teenage survivor of a cataclysmic war between humans and their hated enemies, the Arcanics. In the face of oppression and terrible danger, Maika is both hunter and hunted, searching for answers about her mysterious past as those who seek to use her remain just one step behind... and all the while, the monster within begins to awaken..."

Be it for the art or the story, I'm very excited to give this one a go!

Heavy Metal

I think I've heard of the HEAVY METAL series before, but have never owned one. Just seeing all the psychedelic and crazy art on the back cover forced me to buy this sweet fuckin' thing!

This is more of a magazine than comic, sorta. But all the awesomely weird & funky artwork, cool stories & interviews, and overall vibe of this rad book makes me very happy to own it!